Dream Author

Find out more about who Dream Author is for, how it works, and how you will benefit.

Dream Author

Find out more about who Dream Author is for, how it works, and how you will benefit.

For writers at any and every level of experience who have wasted enough time on fear, doubt, and other unhelpful thought habits

At the end of a year in the Dream Author programme you will have learned:

How to massively increase your chances of success

How to change incorrect, unhelpful and limiting beliefs

How to avoid unnecessary suffering

How to thrive in the face of the psychological and emotional challenges that life as a writer brings with it

How to stop behaving in a way that will make you more likely to fail

What to do when you feel scared, confused, overwhelmed or stuck — in order to feel better, make progress and solve whatever problem you’re facing

How to retain full control over your writing dreams and journey, instead of giving your power away to the first agent or editor who shows an interest in you

How to make sure your dreams, and your definitions of success and failure, aren’t working against you

How to be your own best and most powerful ally and advocate, throughout your writing life

I’m going to give you masses of help in every possible direction. Even so, by the end of a year in the Dream Author programme, you’re going to know that even I can’t help you as much as you’re going to be able to help yourself from now on.

If you want to learn more about me and my writing journey that inspired me to create Dream Author, you can find that information on the About Sophie page.

“Fantastic programme for writers (and for life!) to change your mindset and redirect your thinking to the positive. I’m only a few weeks in and it’s really working already!”

Alexa Tewkesbury

“The Dream Author coaching program put me in the mindset of a successful author from day one. The thought-provoking material and Sophie’s hilarious podcasts are both chock-full of serious industry information. If you’re looking for motivation to take your writing to the next level, you’ll find it here!”

Lee Lowery

“Getting a book published was my dream for decades, yet I was only initially prepared for the writing side of my new job. I hadn’t planned for the wider life changes and personal challenges that come with it — the unpredictability, the exposure, the massive highs and lows. The Dream Author programme has helped me think in a structured way about what I want from my career and how to approach it. Through coaching and challenging, I feel more confident about aiming high, while knowing I’m also improving my resilience to deal with the lows. Sophie shares both her time and her experience very generously and I can’t recommend the Dream Author programme highly enough.”

Who is Dream Author for?

Let me introduce you to some of the people who would benefit immensely from the Dream Author programme. I’ve changed their names and paraphrased what they said to me, but the details of their situations are all real.

Neil’s manuscript kept getting rejected by editors

Neil said: ‘I think if this next batch of publishers all reject my novel, I’m going to quit before things get any more depressing. It’s no fun opening rejection email after rejection email, and I’m sure it’s not helping my blood pressure! When you’ve had as many knock-backs as I have from publishers, you do start to wonder whether you ought to take the hint and conclude that writing perhaps isn’t your destiny. I’m pretty resilient, but even I have my limits, and this hobby that I used to love so much is now starting to feel like a bit of an ordeal.’

Suzannah’s fourth book was savaged by two critics

Suzannah said: ‘When my fourth novel came out, the first two reviews it received were terrible. I was devastated. I’d tried so hard, and put myself under unbelievable stress and pressure, to write something I hoped everyone would love. I was sure it was my best novel yet, but as soon as I read those harsh reviews, I felt ashamed of it and was convinced that it must be crap. After that, the next few reviews were really good — one or two were real raves, in fact — but nothing nice that anyone said could stop me from regarding my novel as a horrible failure.’

Cassie couldn’t give herself permission to write, or think of herself as a writer

Cassie said: ‘I’ve always wanted to write, but I’m a teacher, not a writer, so there’s this really loud, sneery voice in my head saying, “Who are you kidding? You don’t have what it takes to write a good book and get it published.” Whenever I even think about sitting down to start writing my story, I just feel embarrassed and can’t bring myself to do it. It’s easier to pretend I don’t want to write, and sometimes I think I don’t.’

Adam was deeply wounded when huge success was followed by disappointment

Adam said: ‘My first book sold hundreds of thousands of copies and won a big prize, and then my editor left, and the editor who inherited me didn’t like my work. She didn’t make any effort with my next book, and it barely sold at all. This has put me off trying again. I’ve got a new idea for a book which I know I should love and be enthusiastic about, but I’m finding it hard to persuade myself to finish it and submit it to my agent, because I’m terrified of more failure. I’m not sure I can cope if something awful happens again with my next book.’

Beatrice was convinced her age and sales track record would prove fatal to her new book

Beatrice said: ‘I love this idea that I’ve had in my head for nearly a year now, and I know it could be a wonderful novel, but who’s going to publish it if it’s by me? I’m in my mid-seventies, and every publisher would look at my sales figures for previous books and think, “No, thanks. Her books never sell, and anyway she’s so old.” I can’t help wondering if I should save myself the effort and just not bother.’

Jonathan was used to success, but had defined it so narrowly that he set himself up for disappointment and fear

Jonathan said: ‘My books always get to number 1. I’m a number 1 bestselling author. What’s the highest you’ve ever got in the charts? Number 2? Quick, let me move my chair away from you. It might be contagious, this only-getting-to-number-2 disease. If my next book only gets to number 2, I’m blaming you. Don’t you mind not getting to number 1? Don’t you feel like a failure? I would!’

As you can see, all of these writers are facing practical challenges.

But all are also creating suffering for themselves by thinking and believing things that are neither helpful nor necessarily true.

Despite those early harsh reviews, Suzannah’s fourth novel was shortlisted for two major literary prizes.

Beatrice (nagged by me) spent four years writing and improving her novel and sold it in the UK and the US, for six figures in each case. Her UK editor read the manuscript overnight on the day it was submitted and rang her agent the next morning saying, ‘I love it! Please let me publish it and make it our lead title for 2020.’ Beatrice was seventy-five at the time, and yes, her previous six novels had not sold very well at all. Her new editor didn’t care because she loved this new book so much and saw huge potential in it.

As you can see, all of these writers are facing practical challenges.

But all are also creating suffering for themselves by thinking and believing things that are neither helpful nor necessarily true.

Despite those early harsh reviews, Suzannah’s fourth novel was shortlisted for two major literary prizes.

Beatrice (nagged by me) spent four years writing and improving her novel and sold it in the UK and the US, for six figures in each case. Her UK editor read the manuscript overnight on the day it was submitted and rang her agent the next morning saying, ‘I love it! Please let me publish it and make it our lead title for 2020.’ Beatrice was seventy-five at the time, and yes, her previous six novels had not sold very well at all. Her new editor didn’t care because she loved this new book so much and saw huge potential in it.

Jonathan’s last two books haven’t reached number 1 in the charts. Though they’ve both reached the top 3, Jonathan has suffered greatly (and unnecessarily) because he made getting to number 1 his one and only goal as a writer.

Adam has just signed a two-book deal with a new major publisher.

Neil has found a highly-acclaimed independent publishing house that loves his book and is determined to publish it and make it a success.

“As an established, traditionally published author I signed up for Dream Author to explore a new direction in my writing and reconnect with the joy of writing for writing’s sake. I really enjoy the insights and wisdom Sophie shares in her podcasts; her encouragement and positivity, along with the ‘Monday Missions’ have helped me rediscover my mojo as a writer.”

Yvonne Coppard

Jonathan’s last two books haven’t reached number 1 in the charts. Though they’ve both reached the top 3, Jonathan has suffered greatly (and unnecessarily) because he made getting to number 1 his one and only goal as a writer.

Adam has just signed a two-book deal with a new major publisher.

Neil has found a highly-acclaimed independent publishing house that loves his book and is determined to publish it and make it a success.

From where I’m standing, all of these writers are in excellent and successful situations, ideally positioned to create and pursue new and existing dreams. There is not — and, crucially, there was never — any reason for any of them to think in a way that made them feel hopeless, doomed, stuck in a rut or unsuccessful.

This way of thinking comes naturally to me now. I’ve learned how to do it over more than twenty years as a published writer in many different genres. I’ve created Dream Author so that I can share everything I’ve learned with as many of my fellow writers as possible. Learning how to think about my writing career (and each book, each idea, each publishing professional I encounter) in a way that serves my best interests at all times has put me in a wonderfully strong position: I know that whatever failures and disappointments come my way, I will never add to my own suffering. Instead, I’ll adopt the thought habits and strategies that will make me believe I can overcome any obstacle. I want to help you to do this too, because it’s life-changing. The Dream Author programme will teach you how to be your own most powerful and inspiring ally, always.

Dream Author is for anyone who writes, or wants to write, and needs help and support in identifying and pursuing the right goals, aligned with their highest values and priorities. It’s for anyone who wants to learn how to be their own most helpful and loyal advocate throughout their writing life. It’s for writers all over the world, published and not-yet-published, and for anyone whose practical circumstances, doubts, fears, blocks or confusions have made them believe that their writing dreams are unattainable.

“Sophie manages to convey a contagious confidence and enthusiasm for the writing process that I have never heard from anyone else. She has enabled me to re-evaluate my writing goals and to work out which to prioritise.”

Lou Tondeur

What does the Dream Author Programme involve?

Online Access 24/7

If you have a computer and access to the internet, you will be able to access the programme.

Everything that’s included in the programme will be delivered online via workbooks, podcasts, webinars and videos.

Additionally, there will be two chances during the year to attend Dream Author retreats/conferences if you want to work with me and others in the programme and do some in-person work.

One of these retreats will take place at the stunning Hewenden Mill Cottages in West Yorkshire in early 2020.

The other in-person meet-up will be a one-day event and will take place either in London or Cambridge in July or early August 2020. These in-person Dream Author events will be costed and paid for separately. They are extra bonus events that will enhance your Dream Author experience, but they aren’t a core part of the programme. I will be leading/teaching both.

Plus extra free goodies!

In addition to the official Dream Author programme content, members will have access to five months’ worth of early bonus content created between April and August 2019, including nineteen extra episodes of the Dream Author podcast and a thought-provoking variety of Monday Mission exercises on topics that include: Redeciding, Best Questions, Yes-But Lists, Goal-Setting, Story Deals, Success Resistance, Confidence, Inspiration, Writer’s Block, Second Novel Syndrome, how Confirmation Bias can work brilliantly for writers, and what to do if your agent suddenly stops answering your emails and phone calls.

The Dream Author Coaching Approach

Do you want one-to-one coaching, so that you can really focus on getting help with your specific challenges? How about if you could get that, and also have all the benefits of group coaching too — membership of a community, and the realisation (as you hear other writers being coached on their issues) that you can learn every bit as much from listening to another writer getting coached on a problem you don’t think you have? I promise you, this is true. Indirect coaching of this kind is amazingly useful. Often we can see and hear what’s truly going on so much more clearly when we’re witnessing a coaching session and not participating actively in it — and then we can take those lessons and apply them to our own situation. This is how Dream Author works: you will get all the benefits of individual coaching and group coaching, in one place.

The Dream Author Schedule

Right, folks, let me tell you: after the official launch of the programme on Monday 2 September 2019, I’m going to be offering a lot of amazing content for you to dive into!

Read on to discover what precisely the programme involves, and also for my guidelines about how to approach this abundance of content in the way that works best for you…

The Monday Mission

The weekly Monday Mission emails containing either an exercise or some inspiration won’t stop in September! They’ll continue throughout the programme, all year round.

The Monthly Workbook

Each workbook will be divided into lessons/content for you to read, and exercises for you to do. Some of these exercises will relate to the Dream Author coaching priorities — how to approach the thoughts, feelings and challenges you face as a writer in a way that helps you move forward and feel as good as you can while doing so — but some will also be writing exercises and lessons.

Since Dream Author is a coaching programme and not a writing course, the writing exercises will be created with the Dream Author concepts in mind, so they will perfectly complement the rest of the programme. And there will never be any pressure or deadlines; all of these resources will be available to you permanently so that you can use them as and when you want to. See the ‘How to Make Dream Author Work For You’ section below for guidance on how to approach both the reading and the exercises from the monthly workbooks.

The Weekly Webinar

For 45 of the 52 weeks of the year, I will do a weekly webinar that you’ll be able to access live if it suits your schedule. If not, all webinars will be recorded and you’ll be able to watch them later, at your convenience, in the members’ area of this website. The weekly webinar sessions will be your opportunity to get live coaching from me on your particular issue.

The webinars will also be a wonderful opportunity to hear other Dream Author members getting coached on their issues which will be enormously beneficial to you, even if those issues are not ones you are currently having.

The weekly webinar will work like this: if you have a writing problem, dilemma or question that you’d like me to help you with, you’ll email it to me in advance and I will provide coaching on that issue in the next webinar, without revealing your name or any other identifying details. You will be able to ask me any writing-related questions, from ‘Which agent should I choose?’ to ‘Why do I always feel sick when I look at my work-in-progress?’ to ‘How should I deal with a partner who sneers at my writing?’ If you’re able to attend the webinar live, you’ll be able to type comments and further questions into the chat box so that we can have a dialogue. If not, you can watch the webinar later and ask me any follow-up questions in time for the next webinar.

Ask Sophie

On the Ask Sophie page, you can submit any questions or issues you want coaching on if you’d rather receive the coaching in the form of a written response. Your questions and your name will never be published on the Dream Author website, though I might post some of my responses, after removing any identifying details. So, for example, one of these responses might begin: ‘I was asked how to know whether giving up on a book is the right decision. Here’s what I said.’

Podcasts, Audio & Video

There will be podcasts/audio material and videos throughout the year, just for Dream Author members, relating to the various topics in each month’s workbook. The Dream Author podcast is already up and running for early joiners, with episodes like ‘Dream is a Verb’, ‘The Silence of the Agents’ and ‘Story Deals’ posted in the members’ area of this website already – and new episodes are being added all the time! You can listen to a sample episode of the Dream Author podcast here:

Sample Podcast Episode

Here is a webinar with Sophie in which she answers lots of writers questions about some of the particular challenges they are facing:

The Dream Author community

This will be a forum where Dream Author members can chat to each other whenever they want to. I will often turn up and chat too (I’m nothing if not chatty, guys!). Here is where you’ll be able to meet and talk to other Dream Authors, support each other, post book ideas, title dilemmas, difficult-family-member dilemmas and whatever else you want to share, including your stories of triumph and triumph-in-waiting (which is my new way of describing what most people would call disaster). The only rule is: nothing likely to cause a huge row, please. So, absolutely no politics of any sort — unless you wish to endorse my brilliant idea that a cute dog should be the next Prime Minister/President. That’s allowed.

How to make Dream Author work for you

Your Dream Author experience, your choice!

There’s an abundance of content in the Dream Author programme! But there’s never any need to feel overwhelmed or stressed by how much there is, because:

I will never set you any deadlines, or ask you hand in any work by a particular date. It’s totally up to you when you do the work. If you want to, you can spend a leisurely five years listening, watching and doing the exercises. Or you can treat it like a full-time course by consuming all the content and doing all the work in one calendar year. It really is up to you! (And yes, I know some of you would love to be told how to approach the material, and for those people I have created several great ‘Route-Through’ options to choose from. You will be sent these when you join, and you’ll be able to pick the one that you think will suit you best. If you find that it doesn’t suit you, pick a different one and try that instead!)

Everything will remain permanently available to you, even after you’ve completed the programme, so if you find you’re just not getting the time to focus on Dream Author, you can just think to yourself, ‘It’s no problem! Everything will still be there, whenever I’m ready for it.’ Even the live webinars will be there, archived on the site for you to watch when it suits your schedule.

Whether you do the whole of Dream Author in a year or make it last five years, you will get exactly the same benefit from it. The programme will teach you how to think and what to do to make your writing dreams come true — and then you’ll have all the tools you need to practice the new thoughts and habits you’ve learned for the rest of your writing life!

How much does Dream Author cost?

Dream Author membership costs £600 (or the equivalent in your own currency) for the full year’s membership, plus all the bonus content.

You’ll only pay half of the membership fee when you join, and then the second half will be taken from your card six months later.

Can I join Dream Author at any time of the year?

Yes, you can!

If you join at the beginning of a calendar month, you can start that month’s work along with the rest of us. If you join any later than one or two days into the month, I would suggest that you spend the rest of that month doing some of the early Monday Missions (8 April to 26 August) and listening to the podcast episodes that are already available, and then start the next month’s workbook at the beginning of the month along with everyone else. So, let’s say you joined on 16 November: my suggestion would be that you should explore the early Missions and podcasts until the end of November, and then start December’s workbook on 1 December. You would then do November’s workbook the following November, which would effectively then be the last month of your membership. So your Dream Author year would run from 16 November 2019 to 30 November 2020.

What should I do next if I want to enrol?

If you want to enrol in the programme for a full year for £600 or the equivalent in your local currency, all you need to do right now is click the JoinDream Author button below!

Once you’re signed up and have paid the first half of the membership fee, you will receive an email confirming that your place in the programme is securely booked, and giving you details of how to log in to the membership area of this website, where you’ll find all the Monday Mission exercises and podcast episodes so far. And then in September, we’ll embark upon the main Dream Author programme, which is going to be amazing!

Join Dream Author

Click the button below to enrol and start your Dream Author journey as soon as possible!

Do you still have questions?

“I’ve never written a novel but have always dreamed of doing so. Only a few weeks into the Dream Author program, I feel more confident and more inspired than ever that I can make it happen.”

Jaana Asriel

“I am already enjoying the benefits of Dream Author with regular podcasts and Monday Missions to get my teeth into. The podcasts that Sophie records are informative, useful and humorous and the tasks have already helped me consider how to change my mindset.

I have been in touch with Sophie by e-mail with particular queries and she has responded with alacrity, offering very sensible thoughts and advice. I positively look forward to opening my inbox on a Monday morning and can’t wait for all the other wonderful material which will come when the programme officially opens in September. I truly believe that Dream Author is going to be transformative and that I WILL get my writing career off the ground because of it.”

Lynne Hallett

“Dream Author is exactly the programme I needed. I hadn’t realised how much I’d allowed negative thinking habits as an excuse to neglect my dreams. Sophie’s practical approach has already helped me to start taking my writing goals seriously, and to start putting them into action.”

Ann Godridge

“Sophie Hannah’s Dream Author programme helps writers concentrate their thoughts about their writing to get the most from their writing, enjoy their writing and stop wasting their time with negativity. Very empowering and down to earth.”

Liz Webb

“So far this has been a very exciting and motivating project for me as already my motivation has increased and my self confidence boosted. Thanks, Sophie, for the very entertaining weekly podcast. You have such a warm and friendly voice, I just can’t bring myself to ignore any of your encouraging words.”

Lynne Collinson

“Dream Author has already given me a huge confidence boost and allowed me to reframe some of the self-limiting beliefs I had about my writing. I’ve actually written more in one month than I have in the last two years and feel like completing this novel is an eventuality rather than a possibility.”

Louise Willows

“I was looking and looking and looking for what I needed next in my writerly life and then I stumbled upon Dream Author. What a gem! Sophie’s confidence-building and enthusiasm delivered in real world examples has given me just what I needed. Her energy is boundless and her ability to share her wisdom in an accessible and writerly way is utterly transformative.”

Kathy Feest

“I am finding the Dream Author program invaluable for maintaining a positive mindset in relation to my writing career.”

“Worry serves no useful purpose. All it achieves is to spoil our enjoyment of now. Right now, you are creatively and financially successful from your writing. There’s no way of telling what’s in the future, but being unhappy and worried now, while things are going well, will make you less able to create success in the future, not more able — less prepared, not more prepared — because our brains get brilliant at doing whatever they practice doing all the time. So if your mind is currently practising feeling much worse that your situation warrants, that’s what it will become expert at doing! And that won’t help you if your career hits a rough patch. You’ll be so practiced at negative thinking that you’ll be in danger of perceiving the rough patch as a disaster and an invitation to give up. Instead, practice thinking, ‘My writing career is going brilliantly at the moment. It couldn’t be better. And whatever happens in the future, I’ll always create new success.’ And then, whenever you need to, you’ll believe that you can.”